Gen. Dunford, 58, has been widely expected to be nominated to be the commandant. Current and former officials have said that Army Gen. John Campbell, the current Army vice chief of staff, is the leading candidate to take over the Afghan mission, if the top command post there remains a four-star post.

Gen. Amos was the first aviator to lead the Marines and he has been controversial within the Corps. Some Marines have said he has been too quick to end the careers of Marine officers after problems arose in their commands — moves praised by others. Gen. Amos most notably ended the career of two senior generals following an investigation of a Taliban attack on Camp Bastion in Afghanistan.

He has also been criticized for his oversight of the urination video. Some defense lawyers and a Marine lawyer have charged him with unlawful command influence, seeking harsher penalties against those involved in the case.

He has also won praise for what senior defense officials have called a deft transition of the Marines away from Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He has worked to reshape the Marines into a crisis response force, building up mobile headquarters and creating quick reaction forces in Europe.

As part of that overhaul, he won praise for navigating the sharp budget cut backs, shedding some of the Marines’ tanks and larger headquarters while emphasizing forces that can deploy quickly to humanitarian disasters or emerging conflicts.

Gen. Amos praised Gen. Dunford, who served as assistant commandant under him and has been a close ally.

“Joe is one of the most knowledgeable and talented leaders and thinkers in the military today,” Gen. Amos said in a statement.

As the top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Dunford won over the White House with his proposal to keep roughly 10,000 troops in Afghanistan. President Barack Obama last week said the U.S. would keep 9,800 troops in Afghanistan.

Still, Republicans have been critical of Mr. Obama’s plans to withdraw most of those forces by 2016, a plan that Gen. Dunford will likely be asked to defend in his conformation hearing.

Another critical question: What will the change mean for Chesty, the Marine Corps mascot? Gen. Amos wife, Bonnie Amos, has closely supervised the training of the current mascot, Chesty XIV, anxious to avoid the protocol breach caused by the previous mascot Sgt. Chesty XIII.

Some senior Marine officers have commented privately that Chesty XIV has grown a little too husky. Whether Gen. Dunford’s wife, Ellyn Dunford, will order a diet for the mascot remains an open question.

About Washington Wire

Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.